Stocking ankle fabric



July 21, 1936. w, ROESENER 2,048,296

' STOQKING ANKLE FABRIC Filed Nov. 23, 1955 2' Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR.

How 14 Paesezrm ATTORNEY:

July 21, 1936- H. w. ROESENER Patented July 21, 1936 UNITED STATES "PATENT OFFICE I amass ville, N. 1.

Application November 23, 1935, Serial No. 51,186

Claims. (Cl. 66-178) The present invention generally relates'to stockings, more particularly to an improved knitted construction for the ankle. fabric thereof, and has for one of its main objects the provision of a fabric I 9f the character mentioned adapted to snugly fit the ankle and thus eliminate any bulging or distortion at that point of the stocking when being worn.

Heretofore, it has practically been impossible,

10 with the usual method of 'knitting, to produce stockings shaped to fullyfit at the ankle, because stockings knitted in accordance with known methods lack the ability to fully adapt themselves to the irregular shaped outline of the ankle.

1 It will be understood that since the anatomical structure of the normal human ankle forms posterolateral cavities at the foot joint, the anklefabric of the stocking lays loosely over said'cavities with the result that the fabric does not cling of the opposite rear sides of said ankle fabric, a

and disposed to substantially correspond to the natural cavities at the rear of the ankle, said panels being constructed to lay flat and taut over said cavities, thereby preventing bulging or distortion of the fabric.

, Another important feature of the invention resides in the provision of a stocking with a knitted. ankle fabric wherein are introduced shaping panels of shortened loops adapted to draw the fabric closely about the ankle of the wearer without,

, however, being detrimental to the normal elasticity of the major portion of the fabric, which elasticity is necessary for the free movement of the ankle. a i

40 Still another important feature of the invention contemplates the provision of a knitted stocking of the full fashioned type having those courses constituting the ankle fabric formed of series-of 6 shortened loops spaced by series of plain loops of normal length, said shortened loops in the successive courses being associated to form a panel at each of the opposite rear side portions of the stocking ankle fabric whereby said portions are w given a more'substantial body for better fitting the ankle of the wearer, without necessitating an increase in the weight of the fabric and without destroying the sheemess-thereoL-said panels, be-

cause of their inherent construction, acting to as draw the associated portions of the ankle fabric tight and fiat across the cavities of the wearer's ankle. a

" It is also among the desirable featuresof the invention to provide an ankle fabric for knitted stockings having courses consisting of an alter.- 5

.while preserving its required elasticity, whereby said fabric may conform itself to the irregular outline of the ankle and yet allow free movement of the same, certain of the loops in the course being transferred to perfect the ankle fit of the fabric.

The invention is furthercharacterized by the method followed in knitting the courses in the --ankle fabric of a knitted stocking; by the formation and construction of the courses themselves; 20 and, by the cooperation and corelation of the suc-- cessive courses to produce ankle shaping panels of predetermined configuration and in certain definite portions of the ankle fabric.

Other important objects and advantages of the 25 invention will be in part obvious and in part pointed out hereinafter.

The method which I prefer to follow in'the manufacture of my improved stocking consists in knitting the stocking in the usual way down 0 to the point where the ankle fabric starts, then during the knitting of the courses in said ankle fabric laying the threads on the needles while certain needles are in predetermined position with respect to the sinker bed to form a partial 35 course of loops of conventionallength and certain other needles displaced in relation to the sinker bed when predetermined adjacent sinkers come into operation so that the loops formed thereby will be shortened with respect to said 40 loops of conventional length in the course; and finally resuming the usual knitting operation to construct the heel tabs and foot fabric. Also, according to my preferred method, Ifind it 'most 5 advantageous when starting the ankle fabric, thatis, in the first course of said fabric, to actuate the needles in relation to the sinkers in such a manner that only a very limited number of shortened loops will be incorporated in said first course and then to vary the actuation of the needles as the knitting progresses so as to gradually increase the number of shortened loops in" the successive courses. By proceeding in this manner, the associated shortened loops form ta- 5;;

Figure 2 is a diagrammatic transversal section illustrating the ankle fit of a stocking having the usual construction. v

Figure 3 is a view similar to Figure 2, illustrating the ankle fit of a stocking constructed in accordance with the present invention.

Figure 4 is an enlarged diagrammatic view showing a fragment of the ankle fabric in a stocking knitted in accordance with the invention.

Figure 5 is an enlarged diagrammatic view of a modified portion of one course inmy improved ankle fabric.

Figure 6 is a face elevation of a section of a full fashioned stocking blank embodying the invention.

Having more particular reference to the drawings, wherein like characters of reference designate corresponding parts throughout, I have shown in Figure 1 a knitted stocking I having the welt fabric 2, the leg fabric 3, the ankle fabric 4, and the foot fabric 5, the latter including the toe 6, the sole 1, and the heel 8, with its usual high splice portion 8a extending into theankle fabric 4. The welt, leg, and foot fabrics are of a construction commonly known in the art and, therefore, a detailed description thereof may be dispensed with herein.

According to this invention, the ankle fabric 4, that is, the. portion of the stocking substantially included within the area defined by line H and line b-b (Figures 1 aud t) is constituted by courses, portions of which have been diagrammatically shown on an enlarged scale and designated by the reference character 9 in- Figure 4. Each course 9 consists of shortened that in practice each course 9 includes two sets of such shortened plain loops, each set being relatively spaced from one another by a row of plain loops ll of conventional length and associated with the corresponding set of shortened plain loops in the successive courses to provide a pair of shaping panels, one at each rear side of the stocking ankle fabric 4, as diagrammatically represented in Figure 6.

It is to be noted that the increase in the number of shortened loops ID in the successive courses is carried in a direction towards the normal rear of the stocking so that the outer borderv line H of the panels I! starting at a point within the ankle fabric, will extend from wale to wale towards the selvage edges ll of the full fashioned stocking blank (Figure 8) or the normal rear portion of the finished stocking i (Figure 1), whereas the shortened loops ill forming the inner border line i5 of the panels ii are aligned in walewise direction so that said inner I border line l5 will extend along a single wale.

In this manner, as will clearly appear from the drawings, there is provided at the front of the stocking and between the shortened loop panels l2 a substantially rectangular fabric section I 10 consisting of loops of conventional length, and at the rear of the stocking, angular fabric sections ll likewise consisting of loops of conventional length. Because of this construction, it will be appreciated that the fabric sections l8 l6 and I1 respectively will cooperate with the panels I! to impart to the ankle fabric 4 a shape fully conforming to the shape of the wearer's ankle.

Due to the peculiar shaping of the panels l2, the same more readily compensate for the irl0 regularity in the shape of the ankle and because of the special construction of the loops in said panels l2 in relation to the loops in the remaining sections of the ankle fabric, the latter is caused to snugly fit and cling to the ankle. 15 Moreover, since the front section It and rear sections II are made of loops of conventional length, it will be manifest that said sections retain their normal elasticity and, therefore, free movement of the foot may be had without im- 8 posing undue stresses on the fabric structure.

If desired, certain loops in the successive courses may be transferred inwardly of the fabric for the purpose of drawing the same more tightly over the ankle and in Figure 5 of the 35 drawings, I have diagrammatically shown such a course 9a wherein several of the loops Ilia are transferred inwardly, several loops lllb are shortened, and the remaining loops Ila in the courses are of conventional length. It will be understood that the transferred loops Illa in the mentioned particular part of the stocking, assist theshortened plain loops Nib to draw the fabric closer to the ankle of the wearer.

The action of my improved construction for the ankle fabric of a knitted stocking will be apparent from a comparison of Figure 3 with Flgure.2 of the drawings. In these figures, there is diagrammatically outlined the configuration of a normal human ankle A viewed in transversal cross section. Attention is particularly called to the fact that posterolateral cavities C appear at the ankle. Because of this natural formation, the posterior part of the ankle has a concavo-convex surface with three convex or high point portions Pl, P2, and P3, disposed in triangular relationship.

Obviously. in wearing a stocking, the section thereof covering the ankle will bear upon said high points Pl, P2, and P3 and, accordingly, 8. 00 substantial area of the fabric lays looselyover the cavities C with the result that the ordinary fabric becomes unduly limp causing the same to wrinkle or bulge out, as indicated at DinFigure 2. However, when wearing a stocking constructed in 65 accordance with this invention, the shaping panels I2 knitted in the ankle fabric within the area adapted to cover the cavities C draw the fabric closeto the surface of the latter and taut across the same, as shown at E in Figure 3,-due to them tightening actionof the shortened loops forming said panels. f

It is to be understood that I do not intend to limit the invention to the particularembodiment described in detail herein, but that I consider (5 claims.

What I claim is:

1. In a stocking, an ankle fabric including a pair of shaping panels, one disposed in' each of the opposite side.portions of said-fabric and consistlng entirely of shortened loops, and front and rear sections consisting entirely of plain loops of conven onal length. I

2. In a stocking, an ankle fabric including a pair of shaping panels one disposed in each of the opposite side portions of said fabric and consisting'entirely of'shortened plain loops, and front and rear sections consisting entirely of plain loops of conventional length.

3. In a stocking, an ankle fabric comprising a pair of shaping panels one disposed in each of the opposite side portions of said fabric and consisting entirely of shortened loops, and front and rear sections consisting entirely of loops of conventional length, certain of said loops in the rear section being transferred to extend from one wale to another wale in the fabric.

4. In a stockin an ankle fabric including series of successive courses, each successive course having two sets of shortened loops, one set being disposed at each of the opposite rear side portions of the ankle fabric and said sets of shortened loops in the successive courses being associated to form a panel of closely drawn fabric extending walewise of the ankle fabric in each of the mentioned portions. 1

5. In a stocking, an ankle fabric including series of, successive courses, each successive course having two set of shortened loops, one set being disposed at each of the opposite rear side portions 0f-the ankle fabric and said sets of shortened loops in the successive courses being associated to form a. panel of closely drawn fabric extending walewise of the ankle fabric in each of the mentioned portions, the number of shortened loops in each set of every course gradually increasing in walewise direction towards the normal rear of the fabric.

6. In a fullfashioned knitted stocking, an ankle fabric including series of successive courses, each successive course consisting of shortened loops and loops of conventional length, said shortened loops in theseries of successive courses closely to the ankle of the wearer.

7. A knitted stocking ankle fabric having a pair of shaping panels 'one disposed in each of the opposite side portions of said fabric and consisting entirely of loops knitted tighter than the loops in the fabric about said panels.

8. In a knitted stocking ankle fabric, a pair of 20 knitted shaping panels, one disposed in each of the opposite side portions of said fabric and each panel being knitted tighter than the .surrounding fabric. I

9. In a-knitted stocking ankle fabric, a pluas rality of courses, each of said courses having two relatively spaced sets of loops knitted tighter than the intermediate loops in the course, one set being disposed at each of the opposite side portions of the ankle fabric and the sets of loops I0 within each of said portions being associated to form therein a panel of closely drawn fabric.

10. In a knitted stocking ankle fabric, -a plurality of courses, each of said courses having two relatively spaced sets of loops knitted tighter than I ferred from one wale to another.

HARRY W. ROESENER. 

